The Democrats on the Super Committee, in their efforts to reach an deal with Republicans, have offered a new deficit reduction package and just like their last offer this one also contains cuts to Medicare benefits. From Politico:

Supercommittee Democrats quietly floated details late Wednesday of a $2.3 trillion tax-and-cut proposal that includes $400 billion in Medicare and Medicaid reductions, but also clears the way for a new physician payment formula.

The framework — a counterproposal to one offered by Republicans on Monday — calls for $350 billion in savings from “Medicare reforms,” including $250 billion from the providers and another $100 billion from beneficiaries.

*emphasis mine

There was the opportunity for Democrats to go into the 2012 election with a clear and important distinction between themselves and the Republicans. The Republicans have already come out for cutting Medicare benefits so the Democrats could have taken a firm and very popular stance against cutting Americans’ Medicare benefits.

Instead, Democrats chose to totally throw away this potential political advantage. In the 2012 election the American people will now choose between two parties that want to cut your Medicare benefits. The fact that one claims to want to cut your Medicare benefits slightly less will be little comfort and make little difference to many regular voters.

The Democrats have now stated repeatedly that they want Medicare benefits to be cut. Ironically the only ones indirectly protecting Medicare benefits right now is the Republicans simply because they don’t want to reach a deal on taxes.

No wonder young people upset about income inequality are occupying the streets instead of rallying to elect Democrats. Americans need something better than just austerity lite.

OK, we get, again. The Beltway exists in a universe free of the 99%, where corporations rule via leveraged politicians, from Congress to the White House. Where it’s more expedient to cut medicare payments to Doctors than negotiate prescription drug costs or allow importation of drugs. Where it’s more convenient to burden Soldiers, Sailors and Marines with Tricare costs and implement 401k retirement than cut expenditures to BAE, Lockheed Martin, Grumman and the like or restrict the number of Admirals or General Officers and limit our military adventurism.

So the question, especially after yesterdays elections, is whether the electorate (those who are allowed to vote that anyway) will continue to elect Stepford politicians, or expect accountability?

In addition to any and all polls showing that before anything else is done, Americans want tax equity with the rich paying SIGNIFICANTLY more than they are paying now. Additionally, in the 63 years I’ve been around, any politician who has gone after Social Security and Medicare has lost.

I think many people would vote against the majority of Democrats if there is anyone decent running against these idiots.

If this was one, or two, Democrats such as Ben Nelson, I’d get it. But, they all seem to be wanting to kill themselves.

They’re all scum, especially obama and the so-called democrats. The republicans are what they are and we all understand that. obama ran the biggest con-job in U.S. presidential history and effectively ruined what was left of the democratic party.

What, to me, is very frustrating is that all of the polls that show disgust with the congress are misleading. Most people will complain about the other guy’s congress people, but continue to reelect their own. We will continue to get the same govt of the corpses, for the corpses, and by the corpses. By 2016 it probably won’t matter anymore; these sock puppets will be fixed in place and voting will be an exercise to continue ratifying the status quo. We were not able to retain our democracy. Just look at all of the bad legislation since the OWS began.

0 is nothing to me. I’m with the repugs: he should be a 1 termer. If one of the repugs, especially ron paul, wins, it will be worse for the nation how? I will vote for the Green this time. Defenders of 0 don’t make any sense to me, especially when the “lesser of two evils” argument is used.

5. HEALTH CARE
A. Raise the Medicare entitlement fee to 2% of total income including wages, salaries, bonuses, interest, dividends, capital gains and other forms of income. Those paying more than $2,000.00 will receive a tax deduction.
B. Allow Federal government to negotiate with PHARMA industry to lower drug prices.
C. Allow VA Hospitals to care for low income non-veterans.
D. Carry out the Medicare/Medicaid cost reductions mandated by the Affordable health Care Act so that the growth can be slowed. Putting these provisions into action fully and as soon as possible is the best way to reign in spending.
E. Allow Medicare to bundle payments for several standard procedures nationwide phase in over the next four years payments for all procedures and primary care completely replacing ‘fee-for-service’.
F. Implement competitive bidding for durable medical equipment, prosthetics, orthotics, laboratory tests, pharmaceutical and other medical supplies.
G. Require electronic eligibility, claims processing and payment as well as centralized physician credentialing.
H. Do not pay extra for technologies that are more expensive but no more effective than other available technologies.

I hate Nancy Pelosi with a red hot passion. She is nothing but an elite serving bicycle. Why the stupid Dem voters fall for her lip service is beyond me. It makes no sense that people constantly judge people by the crap they say and hardly ever by what they actually do. Pelosi, Obama, and most of the Dems serve the OnePercent like tethered sex slaves.

I give up on this country. People here can’t stand up against these fat lame stupid idiotic bullies . it’s pitiful

Anyone, Republican or Democrat, who proposes to reduce Social Security/Medicare benefits in any way after people have been paying into those programs all their working lives needs to be exposed for what they really are, a THIEF. It needs to be said loud and often that reduction of benefits is THEFT of benefits. And the STEALING of those benefits only helps those who need no more help. And any Democrat who goes along with these ideas is a THIEF and a FOOL.

I know. Obama is a right wing Trojan Horse and he proves it every day, as does Polosi and a huge chunk of the Dems. They are all financed by the uber elite and this administration has allowed the continued heinous misuse of the people for their pleasure at every turn. It is frightening, seriously frightening. People in this country should be impeaching Obama, not toying with reelecting him.

No crap, the Repubs are not putting up any serious contenders against Obama. Why, because he serves them better than W. Just look at these fringe losers on the outside of the serious Repub center running. It’s only obvious.

This country is doomed if we don’t get rid of the right wing OBAMA and the right wing phony Dems. If people can’t see this, we deserve to be the yoked cattle of the ONePercent. And that’s exactly what is happening.

she never does and she doesn’t have to because both sides of the isle represent the same OnePercent. Nancy Pelosi is the most heinous lying hag hatched on this planet. She always goes into these obtuse long winded tailspins packed with misleading words used ad nauseum in propaganda. And these tail spins don’t ever make good sense, have anything meaningful to say, and are just plain,in your face, hot wind. She always spouts the popular ideas when something is out of play or a done deal, then works against it when the time comes. She is scum. And I doubt that she has authentically been elected more than once. She is elite serving knob sucker.

People keep saying it and … Even OWS is being ignored. The rich and their minions on both sides of the isle can’t see suffering or care. These people would step over a dying baby in their path until it disintegrated.

If the people don’t rise up and throw these worthless sociopaths out, we are going to continue to be robbed and millions left to die. We do not have a true government. What was our government is taken over by rich royalty and is run like royalty…above the law. People better wake the hell up.

i say again and again..fuck this austerity bullshit……..increase income, make no more cuts……fuck you clowns……i am 62, i paid into social security every damn week all my life, and when i paid them a dollar it was worth a fuck of a lot more than it is now, these dipshits “borrowed” all my money to spend on their masters, and now they stand ready to take even more of my money, they made an agreement with me to keep my money until i needed it, they could even make money off of my contribution while they held it, and now they have the sick thinking idea of stealing even more…in my lifetime they have pumped us all so full of bullshit we are having a hard time seeing clear, i say think for your own self, choose the right thing that your grandma would have been proud to hear…….that is all it takes……fuck these guys, ride them out of town any way possible……

good words dude…..keep sending out this kind of message every chance you get…..the root of all these sick ass choices these minnions make is fucking greed…….go forth do Good and attempt to cure the ills of mankind is out the window…….now we have michael douglas Greed is Good……well not in any world i have ever read about, and not in the one i have lived in for seven decades….keep using strong words to send out a meme about the greed these fucks display, the lack of understanding and empathy regarding their true mission to promote the general welfare, to form a more perfect union….all the easy to understand things in the first ten amendments……..damn i am pissed…..ahhhhhhhhhhh